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9 Years of Blogging: Lessons from the Trenches
It is May 20 today and that means two things. First, it’s the 5 year birthday of this handsome boy. Without a doubt, his day will be filled with belly rubs and snacks… as it should be. But secondly, this is my 9th anniversary of blogging. It’s also the 9th anniversary of me installing WordPress…
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Five Articles I Wish I could Take Back
Last night I was going through Google archives looking for a post (that I never found) from 2007-2008. I went through 30 some pages of search results and remembered some of the older content I wrote. Some of it is stuff I either wish I didn’t write or I don’t agree with anymore. So I…
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David Simon on Debate and Journalism
It’s why I used to love a healthy newsroom, which I have described as a magical place where everyone disagrees with everything all of the time. Arguments make the work better; when people stop arguing, or at least arguing intelligently, absent the usual half-assed, rhetorical cheating, the work invariably suffers.
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Fact Checking in the Internet World
Like many other industries, journalism has undergone a vast paradigm shift in the last decade. Like advertising, the music and film industries, marketing, public relations and virtually all other professional fields, journalism has had to adjust to a new “immediacy” brought about by the Internet. Now, by all reports, most people get their news from…
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Convergence of technology, journalism and sports
Sheer erudition — and erudition of a very specific type — throws up large barriers to entry. Too often, newer, younger, and more casual sports fans “can sort of get to a certain point of enthusiasm before they hit the ‘stat wall’ where discussion of sports becomes pedantic and quantitative for no discernible reason other…
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Even Though You Don’t Want My Feedback, Ms. Newspaper Editor…
Jay Rosen, Columbia University Journalism Professor, posted a picture of a print-editorial piece in The Valley Press, a small local newspaper in Connecticut. It was an intriguing read into the minds of many in traditional media. For the hard of eyesight (it’s small), let me transcribe this fascinating editorial from editor Abigail Albair: As a…
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Reason Number 834 Why Bloggers Are Not Necessarily Journos
The question of whether bloggers are journalists is a tired debate. So I’ll make this point short and brief. Wired has a pretty good article about the FCC launching a new competition to develop apps that would allow consumers to “spy” on their mobile carriers to ensure that the carriers are not throttling or limiting…
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Journos Go All Capitalistic on Wikileaks
Since the release of the State Department cables by Wikileaks, I’ve sat back and watched as the journalism world has gone through convulsions about the morality of capitalizing on these secrets. It’s been a fascinating, and illuminating, charade. As the fourth estate, the media would like to portray themselves as an unbiased, objective entity that…
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Journalism: The old is new and the new is old
I love journalism. I love it with a passion. I love good journalism. Well executed journalism. Well researched journalism. I care less about the AP Style Guide and more about engaging content. I care less about J-school degrees and more about thoughtful and provocative prose with a dedication to facts. I care less about conglomerate…
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Steve McNair and the Failure of Breaking News Reporting
It’s a late Fourth of July afternoon here in Bethesda, Maryland and I am sitting here working on a chapter in the new book. Peacefully minding my own business while the steady stream of chips from Tweetdeck occurred, I did not realize what was happening. Steve McNair died. Putting aside the tragedy (he was a…